


Blooming bruises

by uxiumin



Category: EXO (Band), K-pop
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Flowers, Fluff, Happy Ending, Language of Flowers, M/M, Romantic Soulmates, Soulmates, a lot of flowers actually, soft
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-11
Updated: 2019-05-11
Packaged: 2020-03-01 05:46:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,682
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18794191
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/uxiumin/pseuds/uxiumin
Summary: By the year you turn 15 a single rosebud will bloom in your hand, creating an invisible and unbreakable bond between you and your soulmate. But, everytime your soulmate gets bruised, injured or wounded you'll bloom flowers exactly where your soulmate hurts.Every ache is notified, even a headache.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> It's my first time writting a soulmate thing, but I do really like this topic!
> 
> I hope the story is not too bad, or boring, I had a fun time writting it. Please leave comments and kudos!

 

 

 

 

 

_A long time ago Humans committed a sin against Mother Nature, long forgotten. An unforgivable, unbearable crime that had to be punished. And so she did._

_The Blooming Curse was cast upon every living human being and every human that will be born from this point until the end of times. The year you reach fifteen years old, at some point, one single rosebud will bloom from your right hand and your soulmate right hand, whoever it is, entangling the two souls forever with an invisible bound. But there is something more about this curse._

_Every time your soulmate gets injured, bruised or wounded, in any form, a flower will bloom somewhere in your own body, exactly where your soulmate got injured. Some soulmates have a bound so sensitive that they can even grow flowers from pains like a simple headache._

 

_Every flower has its meaning, a white camellia growing in your body means, that even wounded, your soulmate is thinking about how adorable you are, and a geranium probably means that they did something stupid while getting hurt. When two soulmates met, one last flower will grow in both bodies, no more flowers will ever bloom from them, meaning they’ve been granted the Mother’s Nature forgiveness._

 

                                                                                                              

* * *

The year Sehun turned fifteen was a great deal, almost like in every other family, having no siblings meant that every familiar called habitually or show up at his house to check if his rosebud bloomed yet. Ironically, the day his rosebud bloomed he was completely alone. The tiny green thing growing from his hand like if it was made of soil, it was a weird feeling he recalls. Sehun had always had a loving family and friends to spare, so he’d never felt really lonely, but looking at the tiny flower he couldn’t help himself to think that he had been a bit alone without knowing it, and from now own, he won’t ever be again. There will always be someone on the other side of the bound.

He cried tears of joy, that day.

 

Sehun usually dreams about the joy of that day, meaning that he will wake up with some flower around his legs, ankles, and knees, and today is not an exception, as soon as he looks his long limbs there they are, some white and pink candy tufts blossoming around his left ankle. He sighs and runs a hand over his copper hair, he had just woke up, but he is already tired.

A normal person would get two or three flowers around his body during the day. That’s okay, people bump into things, people fell, some are just clumsy…, but not his soulmate. There is something more about it that Sehun can’t actually decipher. His soulmate has a getting hurt schedule, sometimes said schedule changes, but what’s more important is that he is always injured in the same spots; legs and back. Sehun wonders if his soulmate has some kind of dangerous hobby or job.

Anyway, he gets up, cuts the flowers and places them in an elegant vase he bought for his good morning flowers, as he likes to call them, and gets ready for another day of college. As soon as he steps out of his bedroom he is greeted by Baekhyun, his flatmate and best friend.

“Morning”- Baekhyun slurs while munching on his breakfast.

“Morning” — Sehun sighs, as soon as he lays eyes on his friend he sees a tiny violet crocus blooming exactly in the middle of his brown hair — “You have a..” — Sehun says signaling his head to Baekhyun.

“Dammit” — Baekhyun stops eating to uproot the tiny flower from his head — “My soulmate always bumps his head into stuff…”

“It’s a crocus” — Sehun states — “Means he is bumping his head into stuff, but he is happy while doing it.” — the flatmates share an accomplice smile.

“A happy idiot” — Baekhyun sighs while looking at the flower in his hand. — “I have to find him before he actually turns dumb from all this head bumping.”

 

They share some more talk before leaving their comfy flat, another long day waits ahead.

During his third period Sehun gets more candy tufts, but this time on his lower back, he even had to ask for help to take them off. Always candytuft, the flower of the indifference.

Sehun isn’t angry with his soulmate, maybe he is a little exhausted, overwhelmed, from the constant flowers, but he is concerned about the meaning of its flowers. Always indifference.

Baekhyun is always getting happy flowers, flowers that say take care and that kind of cute stuff. But he always gets indifference, does his soulmate think about him even once?. Sehun gets really bitter about this issue, he avoids to talk about it with anyone, even Baekhyun and simply watching all the crocus, azaleas and pink camellias his friend gets makes him jealous.

 

Jealous, that’s the word.

 

The copper-haired boy doesn’t realize yet, but this bitter feeling hurts, and hurting makes flowers bloom. This jealous wound inside of his heart makes a yellow hyacinth bloom in the chest of a dancer with tanned skin and silver locks, making him wonder what his soulmate is jealous of.

 

                                                                                                     

* * *

 

I have the solution to our flower problems” — says Baekhyun storming into Sehun’s bedroom one Saturday when he hasn’t even woke up yet.

“What?” — Sehun asks sitting on his bed, with the wildest bed hair you can imagine.

“You know that arrogant kid in my calculus class?” — the smaller says trying to imitate the guy in question. Sehun simply nods, laughing softly at his friend.

“Well, he found his soulmate not so long ago, a girl just as arrogant as he is” — he explains with a nausea expression — “So I asked them what did they do to find each other.” — Sehun looks at his friend, with a victorious pose, confused.

“Supposedly, you find them at the right time, that’s what the curse says” — Sehun walks out of his bed and starts choosing an outfit for the day.

“Yes, yes” — Baekhyun gives Sehun a card — “But they accelerated the process” — he says with a big grin on his face.

“What’s this?” — asks the taller looking at the card on his hand. In golden letters, you can read “Fortune Teller Do Kyungsoo” and some address at Seoul center.

“They didn’t want to tell me at first. But you know I can be very persuasive” — Baekhyun blinks to his friend.

“A pain in the ass, you mean” — Sehun throws the card to his bed, disregarding it — “That’s probably a scam Baek.”

“It’s not!” — Baekhyun jumps over Sehun's bed — “I’m going to try it and met my tall and idiot soulmate!”

“Stop jumping on my bed” — Sehun tries to stop his friend but is futile. “They are going to kidnap you and sell your organs!”

Baekhyun laughs loudly.

“Say you’ll come and I’ll stop jumping and eating your cereal instead of mine!”

“I knew you have been eating my stuff” — Sehun throws a cushion to his friend, that fakes his own falling from the bed and death very dramatically.

“Come on, it’ll be fun.”

Sehun is not really convinced, but the idea of letting Baekhyun going solo to this fortune-teller is even worse than the idea of getting scammed. And he can’t actually say no to Baekhyun’s puppy eyes.

“Okay” — Sehun finally says, lying in the bed next to Baekhyun — “But as soon as I see something fishy I’m out.”

“Great!” — Baekhyun hugs Sehun — “I told you I’m persuasive.” — he laughs.

“A pain in the ass” — says Sehun joining the laugh and the tight hug.

 

 

What Sehun didn’t expect was that that next Sunday Baekhyun will wake him go meet the fortune-teller. Sehun expected a lazy nice Sunday, catching up with some homework and some shows, maybe some snacks... and instead he was walking around the busy and crowded streets of Seoul following his overexcited best friend. The fortune-teller’s office was in one of those fancy and modern buildings at the center of any big city like Seoul, glass everywhere, even the elevator was made of glass giving them a ride with great views but also a crazy vertigo feeling.

They reached the fortune-teller office, the waiting room was empty but the lady at the desk told them that usually it’s full at this hour, they got lucky. Baekhyun beams at her response, but Sehun remains skeptical.

 

Around ten minutes after their arrival, the same lady at the desk leads them to the teller’s office and asked them to wait there for him. It was an elegant and bright office, every piece of furniture was white, some books and notebooks stored on the walls and some pictures about palm reading and face reading. Both friends sat in front of the big white desk to wait, but seconds after they sat a tiny man entered the room.

The fortune-teller dressed in a clean black suit, not too elegant but definitely not casual wearing, sat at in front of them and scanned both friends with his round dark eyes.

“You are not soulmates” — he stated — “Are you here to check if this union would be favorable?”

“N-no” — Baekhyun stuttered. He was a tiny man, but impressive — “We are not a couple.”

“Good” — he answered quickly — “Non-soulmate unions never end favorably.”

Sehun and Baekhyun looked at each other a bit dazed about the certainty the fortune-teller emanated.

“My name is Do Kyungsoo, but I guess that you already know that.” — he sighed, starting again the conversation — “Please introduce yourselves, and tell me about your problem.”

"Oh Sehun” — he bowed his head politely.

“Byun Baekhyun” — he bowed too — “A classmate with our same problem recommended you.”

“I’m glad my clients recommend me” — a short smile appeared for a short second on his face — “What is the issue?”

“You helped him find his soulmate” — Baekhyun almost whispered. — “We want the same”

The tiny smile on the teller’s face soon disappeared, instead, he looked at the boy serious, blank.

“I can’t provide that service, and I won’t anymore. Please leave.” — Kyungsoo pointed at the door.

“Why?” — Baekhyun asked — “You helped that bragger and not us? We can pay”

“Is not a matter of money.” — he explained shortly — “I owed his family a favor, and I settled my debt like that, nothing else.”

“So, there is actually a way?” — asked Sehun, confused.

“It is, but I won’t tell.” — Kyungsoo moved from his chair to the door, trying to make the boys leave. — “If I tell everyone that asks me about this issue, Mother Nature will curse me even more.”

“Please” — Baekhyun pleaded, even bowing — “My friend really needs your help.”

Sehun looked at Baekhyun a bit misplaced, what was the other plotting.

“He gets thousands of flowers every day. He fears that his soulmate may be dying or hurting himself, he needs to find him.”

Kyungsoo looked at Baekhyun, a bit skeptical, and then at Sehun with a thick brow arched.

“Is that true?”

Sehun got up from his chair and bowed too. “I-It is!  I don’t know how many times I have left! I’m desperate.” — Sehun doubted that Baekhyun’s lies would work on someone like Kyungsoo, but to his relief they might have tenderized his character, he sat again at the other side of his desk and looked at them, staring deeply, thinking.

“What I am about to tell you both must remain a secret” — Kyungsoo proceed — “And I mean It, I can’t send anyone to tell that kid to shut up, but I can send someone to remind you both to be silent, are we clear?” — his face didn’t show any sign of joking, Baekhyun gulped and Sehun nodded, wondering what they were getting into.

“Okay” — he grabbed a book from the shelf and wrote some things in a paper — “What I wrote here is a recipe you must follow, be careful that the flowers are not toxic.”

“A recipe?” — Sehun asked while Baekhyun read the paper.

“For a tea” — Kyungsoo nodded while talking — “You need to ingest the flowers your soulmate send you because they are born from the bond you both have.”

“What will happen after drinking the tea?” — Baekhyun asked giving Sehun the paper.

“You’ll get a vision. It can be whatever, maybe you’ll see its face, or what is your soulmate doing... But you’ll get an insight.” — Kyungsoo sighed.

They both thanked the man deeply, Baekhyun even took his hands to thank him, and the fortune-teller looked a bit overwhelmed.

“The lady outside will charge you this session. And don’t forget: if you tell anyone I’ll find you both.” — the last gaze the tiny man gave to both friends could actually kill.

 

 

After paying at the front desk and saying their goodbyes to the lady at the front desk, the entered the glass elevator. While going down Sehun couldn’t stop thinking if they were doing the right thing but his thoughts were interrupted by his loud friend.

“He believed me completely! It was a bit dramatic but I can’t believe it worked!” — the small one joked. Sehun simply smiled, to him all that performance, was in some percentage, true.

“Your performance was good too, by the way” — Baekhyun kept saying jokingly.

Sehun simply sighed, looking at the paper with the recipe.

“Do you think that this is alright?” — Sehun asked

“What do you mean?”

“I don’t know. I’ve been... Getting worse lately.” — Sehun sulked a bit, this topic made him so vulnerable, and he hated it. “I can’t stop thinking about the idea that my soulmate hates me.”

Baekhyun looked at Sehun with a mixture of pity and concern and took one of Sehun’s hands between his.

“Your soulmate doesn’t know you, how could he hate you?” — Baekhyun tried to cheer him up. — “Let’s do this. I’ll drink the tea first, and see what happens. After that, you can decide if you want to try or not, okay?” — Baekhyun explained softly.

Sehun nodded with a tiny smile on his face. He was so grateful for having Baekhyun in his life, even when he couldn’t express his feelings right Baekhyun knew and always supported him. A giddy feeling growled inside Sehun’s heart when any kind of love grows it stings a little as your heart expands.

The flower that grew up in Jongin’s chest that evening was no other than an iris, the flower of a cherished friendship. Was his soulmate feeling happy at least? Was he getting better?

Jongin smiled at the wondrous purple flower that emanated from his chest and kissed its petals.

The dancer loved to see a bit inside his soulmate's heart. He has been sending him really concerning messages lately, like the yellow hyacinths and carnations, that made him wonder if his soulmate was okay.

 

He is aware that his soulmate must receive tons of flowers since, dancing, at the level he does, sometimes requires a lot of effort and dedication. Stiffness and bruises are everyday companions in his life, but his soulmate almost never hits or injures himself physically, most of the time he sends flowers from the heart. Flowers full of sentiment. Jongin knows that his soulmate feels things strongly and that he has wonderful friends, iris are not that uncommon after all, but sometimes he becomes sad, anxious, a mess, and those are the kind of nights when Jongin stays awake, blooming flowers for hours non-stop. He likes to think that he stays awake with his soulmate, listening to his deeper thoughts and feelings.

He likes to wonder about what type of flowers his soulmate receives at his side of the bound. Physical pain means nothing to the talented dancer, he is way used to it by now, but, feelings… feelings are really hard for Jongin. Sometimes he is unable to express them, verbally, he would love to be a bit more like his friend Chanyeol, that, as soon as he feels something he says it in the loudest way possible. The tanned skin dancer can only hope that the bound, and his body are able to put in flowers what he is unable to put in words.

 

Jongin hopes that, in return for this purple iris, his soulmate gets a beautiful pink camellia.

 

 


	2. Chapter 2

 

         

                                                                             

 

 Sehun and Baekhyun arrived at their comfy little flat a few hours later, mostly because they both decided that they needed a fancy teapot to blend their magical flowery tea. They were waiting for Baekhyun’s soulmate to get injured watching some shows, lying in their big ass sofa when the smallest one got another blue crocus at the top of his head. Baekhyun jumped out of the sofa to the kitchen in a speed Sehun has never seen in his friend, Sehun helped cut the flower and cleaned the petals while Baekhyun boiled water and put it into the glass teapot, probably the expensive item in their student's kitchen.  

“Do you think it is done?” — Baekhyun asked looking nervously at the petals floating in the water.

“It’s been only two minutes." — Sehun answered rolling his eyes, Baekhyun looked back at him, disappointed, he wanted to drink the whole water and have the wildest vision about his soulmate. Sehun could clearly notice how nervous his friend was.

The alarm in Sehun’s phone rang when 4 minutes had passed, they thought that it was enough time to the tea to be done, so Baekhyun ran to grab a mug and poured some of the beverage.

“Here I go” — Baekhyun murmured after taking a long sip.

“You are going to burn your throat.” — Sehun reprimanded, but Baekhyun didn’t listen, he gulped the liquid as if his life depended on it. — “How was it?” — Sehun asked once he was done.

“It… It tasted like hot water, to be honest.” — Baekhyun stayed silent for a second — “But I feel like something is tickling in my head”

Baekhyun leaned back on the couch and closed his eyes for a straight minute, he didn’t even move, Sehun started to get concerned when he heard some mumbling coming from his friend throat.

“Baek, Baek” — Sehun called his name trying to wake him up. “BYUN BAEKHYUN” — Sehun grabbed his friend's arm and shook him. Right then Baekhyun opened his eyes and shouted so hard it echoed in the hallway of the flat.

“I saw it!”

“You saw him?!” — Sehun was now as excited as his friend.

“Yes!” — he jumped from the couch, completely moved by his vision — “Well, I didn’t see him, but I saw a lot of stuff”

“What?!” — Sehun was now looking at him, beaten, with one of his perfect eyebrows arched. — “What was all that emotion for if you haven’t seen him?”.

“I saw a basketball court” — Baekhyun explained his vision the best he could — “It was the first thing I saw, after that, I saw some big ass hands with a ball, and I think I heard his laugh.”

Both flatmates fell in comfortable silence, Baekhyun had a confused look and Sehun didn’t really know how to help his friend or what to say to ease all the doubts and confusion wandering inside his head.

“Listen” — Sehun said — “We can go check the basketball court at campus tomorrow”

“What if it’s not that one?” — Inside Baekhyun’s eyes gleamed a hint of concern.

“We have to start somewhere, don’t we?” — Sehun smiled at his friend with all the sincerity he was able to handle. He had to support him like Baekhyun always does to him. In the end, Baekhyun nodded and hugged his tall friend tightly.

“Thank you, Sehunnie” — Baekhyun murmured.

“What a Monday is going to be tomorrow” — Sehun whispered. Baekhyun scoffed and broke the hug, leaving to his bedroom.

“And you have the nerve to call me a pain in the ass”

  
  
  
  
  
  
  


“Jongin, JONGIN” — Chanyeol’s voice could be heard everywhere around their flat, the giant stormed into his flatmate bedroom without knocking but having the decency of not breaking the door.

“WHAT?!” — Jongin screamed back, startled.

“I’m feeling something really weird and I think that my soulmate is dying!” — he talked without breathing and Jongin needed at least five seconds to understand the sentence.

“What are you talking about?” — the dancer had to ask.

“Look at this, this is a funeral flower” — Chanyeol said stuffing Jongin’s face inside a bouquet of pink hydrangeas.

“Hydrangeas?” — Jongin took the flowers in his hands.

“They bloomed in my chest right now. He is dying, and I’m going to die alone.” — Chanyeol threw himself dramatically over Jongin’s bed.

“I think you might be overreacting” — Jongin said looking inside a book about flower meanings. “I never got pink hydrangeas, but here it says that pink ones mean genuine devotion and love.”

Chanyeol looked at Jongin with eyes bigger than ever, open-mouthed.

“So...he is falling in love?” — the taller red-haired asked with a hint of sadness. Jongin sighed. This kind of crisis was normal in his flatmate.

“Yeol” — Jongin sat beside his friend — “Maybe he is thinking about you, who knows...”

“I have to find him, Nini” — Chanyeol pouted — “I can’t bear the idea of my soulmate… leaving me.”

“He won’t” — Jongin hugged Chanyeol’s back — “No one is leaving you, don’t be dramatic”

Chanyeol nodded and looked at Jongin, full of gratitude, he knows Jongin is not the best at expressing his feelings, but Jongin’s hugs are the best.

“How is your soulmate doing, by the way?” — Chanyeol asked looked at a purple iris in a glass with water.

“I think he is doing better” — Jongin sighed. — “I am worried about what type of idea he has of me, to be honest.”

“I guess he thinks you are some kind of adrenaline junkie or that you are into dangerous stuff. You get a new bruise almost every day” — Chanyeol laughed and Jongin smiled a bit annoyed.

“Get out of my room, you have some important sports stuff tomorrow” — Jongin threw a bear plushie at his friend's head.

“Important sports stuff, you mean the most relevant basketball match in the college league, but yes, you are right” - Chanyeol said with a mocking voice. —” Are you coming to see me tomorrow, by the way?”

“Of course, good night Yeol.”

“Night, Nini.”

 

                                                                                                     

* * *

 

Every student knows that Mondays aren’t an easy day per se, but for Sehun, that morning, was the most stressful Monday he remembers. As soon as he woke up he heard Baekhyun having his first breakdown about what to wear, his flatmate didn’t even have breakfast that morning because of all the nervousness churning inside his stomach.

They arrived at college way sooner than usual just to “check out the court” as Baekhyun has called it even if the one checking the court was Sehun because his tiny friend was way too nervous and scared to look inside. What a chicken.

The basketball team of their college was inside, having its morning practice, minding their own business, when Sehun recalled on some fliers plastered across the court, he took one to give it to his mess of a friend.

“Here” — Sehun showed it to Baekhyun.

“A match?” — Baekhyun said looking at the flier.

“If your soulmate is a basketball player you can check our team and the other college team. Buy one, get one free.”

“But… I’ve never been to a basketball match” — Baekhyun stuttered.

“You should get used to it, though” — Sehun shrugged.

“Fine” — Baekhyun said with resolution — “It’s late” — he looked at his watch — “I’ll see you at the court at 5 then.”

“Wait, what?” — Sehun said in a high-pitched tone, completely involuntary, making Baekhyun laugh. — “I’ve never said…”

“But I need moral support” — Baekhyun pleaded with his puppy eyes — “See you there!”

As soon as the tiny brown-haired boy yelled that he vanished into a crowd of students trying to get to their classrooms. Sehun sighed, it was the least he could do for his friend, but he really found sports boring. Just as his friend did, he laughed inside his mind at the idea of Baekhyun dating a sporty type of guy. That thought derived in what kind of person his soulmate could be. Clumsy? Given all the flowers he usually gets. Sporty? It could be an explanation. Is music inclined? A dancer?.

All the questions popping non-stop inside his head made the time run faster while Sehun could only munch into the idea of his soulmate. Next time he looked at his phone it was already the hour of the infamous match, he ran across the hall trying to get in time, so he hadn’t to hear Baekhyun’s complaints. His friend was sensitive enough today without Sehun being late. In his race against time, he bumped into some stranger trying to enter the court.

“Sorry” — Sehun yelled without looking back, he could already see Baekhyun waving at him at the top of the stands.

The stranger did look at him, though.

“What a beautiful copper hair”, Jongin thought.

The match started not long after, so Baekhyun didn’t have any complaints about Sehun timing, he was so nervous it was endearing to watch, he scrutinized the face of every player he managed to have close. Baekhyun was holding his heart in his hand and Sehun wondered if he would look like that the day he found his soulmate.

Flowers can bloom whenever and wherever, even in a basketball match, because the bond doesn’t understand anything about hobbies or duties. Some players and attendees of the match bloomed a few flowers here and there, but one player was having a really difficult time: Park Chanyeol couldn’t stop blooming Christmas roses all over his chest.

“What’s wrong with that guy?” — someone sat behind Sehun and Baekhyun asked out loud.

“Those are Christmas roses…” — Sehun whispered — “the anxiety flower”

“His soulmate must be having a bad day..:” — Baekhyun said nonchalantly.

When a gladiolus bloomed from Baekhyun’s chest it clicked inside Sehun’s brain. _These two are connected,_ he thought.

“Beekhyun” — Sehun grabbed his friend by the shoulders — “You need to calm down.”

“It’s easier said than done, you know!” — Baekhyun said back. Sehun grabbed the flower that Baekhyun had just cut from his chest.

“This is a gladiolus” — Sehun showed it back to his friend — “It means, “give me a break”, Baek. You are torturing the guy.”

“What guy?!” — Baekhyun said a bit too much loud. Sehun took Baekhyun’s face between his hands and directed it, so he looked at Park Chanyeol

"That guy" —  Sehun yelled.

“I… I am...doing that?” — Baekhyun asked stuttering.

“Try thinking about him, about how much you want to meet him or whatever if he grows a flower with that meaning it’s him.” — Sehun said with confidence.

Baekhyun tried to calm himself into thinking another type of stuff, thinking about how many times he had dreamed about finding his soulmate, thinking all the scenarios he had draw inside his mind if that Chanyeol was the other person at the end of his bound he needed to support him, not give him anxiety flowers.

“Please, please.” — Baekhyun mumbled, eyes closed, almost prying.

And there it was. A single red tulip growing in the chest of the tall red-haired player, that looked at his own body like it was gone crazy, and of course, a bit embarrassed, that all of this had to happen in the middle of an important match.

“A red tulip” — both friends at the stands whispered in awe.

“A declaration of love” — Sehun beamed a smile to Baekhyun.

Baekhyun was still nervous, for sure, but he managed to control its beating heart to the point where his basketball player didn’t get any more flowers. The way Chanyeol played was mesmerizing, tall and attractive he draws to him all the attention even without the constant flow of flowers, and, for sure, his game got way better and more confident without them.

Baekhyun couldn’t be more proud. Of course, they hadn’t met each other yet, but that’s the thing about soulmates, your bound is so strong that it feels a natural part of your own body, it’s like you’ve known the other part already.

The match came to an end half an hour later, with a victorious Chanyeol, hugging his teammates and greeting to the excited public with a bright smile.

“You should go after him” — Sehun said to Baekhyun.

Baekhyun simply nodded, but they decided to wait for him at the locker room after Chanyeol had time to shower. When they arrived at the door of the locker rooms another guy, tanned skin and silver hair was waiting there too. The basketball players started exiting out the locker room not long after, and as soon Baekhyun saw Chanyeol’s red-haired head his feet walked towards him, not giving it even a second thought.

Chanyeol was talking happily to the tanned skin guy that was waiting also there when Baekhyun interrupted.

“Ch-Chanyeol?” - he asked, stuttering a little.

“Yes?” — Chanyeol looked at him, with his bright smile still gleaming.

“Can we talk? It’s just a second” — Baekhyun looked at Jongin, and he just slides trying to disappear from the ongoing scene.

Sehun still doesn’t know to this day why he did that, maybe something inside the bound dragged him near Jongin, but what’s for sure is that he just crossed the hallway towards Jongin even if he had never exchanged any words with the handsome guy before.

“Are you friends with Chanyeol?” — Sehun asked, also wanting to vanish from the cheesy conversation that, for sure, will take place.

Jongin nodded. “I guess you are friends with the other guy”- he asked and Sehun nodded back. — “So, you know what’s going on?”

“You’ll know soon.” — Sehun smiled.

Jongin could feel how he didn’t want to stop looking at that tall guy smile, the way his dark eyes formed a crescent moon while doing it was hypnotic, but curiosity hit him hard.

“That’s all I wanted to say, I am sorry I made the match hard for you at first” — Baekhyun has been rambling non-top for the last three minutes and Chanyeol, even if he finds him endearing and cute, is completely lost.

“Okay..” — Chanyeol said unsure — “But, what are you sorry about exactly, you were just… watching.”

Baekhyun looked about to explode, and so he did, he just blurted it out.

“I gave you all those flowers because I was nervous today, and I can’t just express how sorry I am that I made you go-” — Baekhyun was suddenly stopped by Chanyeol, grabbing his arm, looking like he had found gold.

“You are my soulmate?” — Chanyeol asked, his voice trembling a bit, even his ears were blushing.

“I am, I think...”

Chanyeol couldn’t help himself, he had to hug Baekhyun, and he did, so tightly that he lifted the tiny guy from the floor. Good thing that he was tired enough from the match, or he could’ve started spinning in the middle of the hallway.

When they broke the hug, they looked at each other like nothing else existed in the entire world, everything was right inside their cloud. All over their bodies, a lot of tiny blue flowers started growing everywhere, falling to the ground.

“Forget-me-nots” — Sehun whispered to Jongin — “ True love”

“We should leave” — Jongin whispered back, being unable to stop looking at Chanyeol and Baekhyun. “Anyway, it’s like we aren’t here anymore.”

Sehun scoffed knowingly, they both walked away in the most silent motion they could manage, the giggles trying to come out of their lungs, the mutual understanding in their eyes, they stopped caring about the other two startling at their noises, at some point they just ran until there was no more hallway until they reached the campus exit.

It was dark already, the campus was quiet and dark, the only sources of light came from the dim streetlamps and the eventual cars coming and going. Jongin offered himself to drive Sehun home, at first Sehun said no, but Jongin insisted a bit more, and if you ask Sehun, resisting Kim Jongin’s smile and pleading eyes is difficult.

“I just didn’t want to bother you.” — Sehun mentioned, inside the car.

“Once again: is not a bother.” — Jongin answered brightly. _His smile could light the whole road,_ Sehun thought.

“What about your soulmate?” — Jongin asked out of nowhere, making Sehun wake up from his thoughts about Jongin smile.

“What about him?”

“Do you know him? Do you receive a lot of flowers?”- he asked again with a light chuckle.

“I..:” — with all the fuss going on with Baekhyun, Sehun had forgotten about his issues for a short while. — “I don’t know what to say about him, to be honest” — Sehun sighed.

Jongin didn’t want to intrude any further into his new friend live, but the idea of remaining silent in that kind of situation was deeply awkward to him, at the same time something inside pulled his heartstrings towards Sehun, wanting to know more, in the end, Jongin opted to be sincere.

“I… I think I understand you” — Jongin said softly while driving. The car radio kept ringing some tunes that now seemed far, more like a mumble. — “I also have some issues with my soulmate.”

“What issues?” — Sehun asked without even thinking about it twice, his own body balanced to face Jongin.

"I dance, like, professionally. So I get bruises all the time, and I’m aware of how the curse works, so he might be getting tons of flowers, the poor thing.” — Jongin chuckled empathetically — “But, that pain means nothing to me, it’s some mere formality I have to overcome to get better… I wonder every day what type of flowers he might be getting.. if he hates me.”

“I don’t think he does.” — Sehun said trying to be supportive.

“But I think he does.” - Jongin sighed — “I always get these yellow flowers…” — Jongin looked at Sehun, the car was dark, but even without the proper light, Sehun looked stunning to Jongin’s eyes. His copper hair framed his face perfectly making his features even sharper and attractive, the understanding eyes, that silent sigh that came from his throat…

“Anyway” — Jongin resumed the conversation — “I didn’t want to bore you, I’m sorry.”

“You didn’t” — Sehun directed a deep gaze to Jongin, even if the driver was looking at the road — “My problem is similar. I always get the same flower, the same white or pink flower that means indifference. I think he hates me.”

“I don’t think he does” — Jongin mimicked Sehun and both laughed, lifting the mood inside the car.

Not too long after they arrived at the park near Sehun’s flat, Jongin parked and offered to walk to the door, but Sehun called him cheesy winning a chance to see Jongin’s beautiful lips pouting dramatically. They parted ways, but both their hearts won something that night.

  
  
Two red carnations.

  
  
My heart aches for you.

  
  
  
  
  


                                                                                                             

* * *

 

It’s been one hour since Sehun woke up and started looking at the glass teapot in the kitchen like his soul had left his body. Wearing pajamas, his breakfast already cold and his copper hair lying in every possible direction without rhyme or reason.

“If you want to do it, just do it” — Baekhyun half said half yawned while entering the kitchen, already dressed. — “It went well for me.”

“Speaking about that” — Sehun’s brain woke up that exact second — “How was it?”

Baekhyun couldn’t help himself, a bright smile came right up his face, but a second later he punched Sehun’s arm with a stern look. “Thank you both for letting us there!. There were no buses and Jongin was supposed to drive Chanyeol!”

Sehun laughed and Baekhyun smiled back again, he wasn’t really mad, indeed he proceeded to tell every detail about Chanyeol he retained from the yesterday. And everything means exactly everything, about his fluffy hair, his big eyes, the way his smile goes from ear to ear, or how his deep voice makes a funny squawk every time he gets startled, which is easy.

“Sehun” — Baekhyun eating his breakfast in the kitchen, backing Sehun when his voice got more serious. — “You should have the tea. Honestly.”

“Yesterday… “ — Words got tangled into Sehun’s throat — “I received a new flower.”

“What flower?” — Baekhyun asked excitedly.

“A red carnation”

“I told you, he doesn’t hate you.”

“I’m scared Baek” — Sehun said almost whispering

“I was too” — Baekhyun sat beside his friend. — “But you were with me and I’ll be here for you.”

Sehun wanted to do it. So badly. He wanted to drink the water and have a vision, he didn’t care if the vision wasn't a great thing, he would settle for any little detail that Mother Nature decided to show him. So, what was stopping him?

The pouty lips he saw last night. The adorable smile that bright every dark corner of his mind.

The water was boiling, and the petals were clean and fresh. Sehun added them to the water and waited for four long minutes with Baekhyun trying to distract him with some nonsense about a video game.

When his phone rang, Sehun understood why Baekhyun, a few days ago, gulped his whole mug not caring about his throat or tongue getting scalded. When the mug was empty he looked at his friend, and as soon as he moved one of his long legs a dizzy feeling ran all over his body, he could feel some electricity inside his head, Sehun doesn’t remember if he had his eyes closed or open when he had the vision, but he does remember that when he woke up from it he was the happiest man ever alive.

He left the mug in the counter, and mumbled something at Baekhyun about leaving immediately to the art building in the campus, he changed his pajama pants for some jeans and covered the upper part with a hoodie, sneakers on and left their flat running.

He understands now, he understands everything, he feels so relieved and, at the same time so stupid, he wants to punch himself. He knew who he was even before he drank the goddamn tea, he knew that those dark eyes on his meant something, that the way he understood everything that came from his mouth had to mean something. That the way his heart seemed to pounce at the same rhythm as he had to mean everything.

Sehun hadn’t thought (or, at least, he didn’t give it a second thought) about the race from his flat to the campus, he was already panting when he got to the Arts Building, and when he tried to ask someone about a location nobody could understand him. In the end, he decided to breathe and sit for a second or two, when from a window, classical music came like a stream.

He recognized the music as soon as it reached his ears. That music was in his vision.

He entered the room without looking, and there he was.

When Jongin heard the door open abruptly, he stopped his dancing to look in said direction, to find a tired Sehun, breathing oddly.

“Sehun?” — he asked.

Jongin noticed his happy and overwhelming expression, the way Sehun’s eyes never moved from his, and, especially, Jongin noticed the deep pink gloxinias growing from his chest.

“What is…?”

“Gloxinias.” — Sehun answered, moving towards Jongin — “Love at first sight.”

Jongin blushed heavily when he heard that. His soulmate had never sent something like that to him.

Sehun and Jongin were now really close, even closer than last night while in Jongin’s car, Sehun took a strand of the dancer’s hair between his fingers and placed it with all the others, caressing his head softly.

They both looked at each other and Sehun couldn’t resist. He kissed Jongin, without fear, nothing obscuring his mind. It tasted like honey, like wonders, like home, like the right thing to do. And the other’s smile they both could felt in the kiss was the best part about it.

At the touch, one last flower bloomed.

“I’ve never seen this flower” — Sehun said confused.

“A viscaria” — Jongin answered softly.

“What does it mean?”

“Will you dance with me?”.

  
  


Sehun, at that moment, swore that his answer would always be yes.

  
  
  
  


                                                                                             

 

 


End file.
